


Unfading

by Creed Cascade (creedcascade), Echosrevenge



Category: Angel: the Series, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: Canon deaths, First Time, M/M, Slow Build
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-03
Updated: 2013-11-03
Packaged: 2017-12-31 08:02:44
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,966
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1029270
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/creedcascade/pseuds/Creed%20Cascade, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Echosrevenge/pseuds/Echosrevenge
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Set after both the final seasons of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Angel”, Spike goes to Africa looking for some answers.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Unfading

"Well, the great Poof did warn us that we'd likely die tonight," was Spike's last thought before he lost himself in the rush battle. Even though he and Angel spared some thought to keeping Gunn safe, the wounded man was the first to fall.

A demon no larger then a small child darted between Spike and Angel. Gunn's ax fell in time to separate the demon's head from its shoulders, but not fast enough to stop the lethal claws from delivering a fast acting poison into his bloodstream.

Spike heard Gunn's heart stop and knew Angel had heard as well as the two of them moved back to back. They both fell into a rhythm from years far past. As comfortable as it was, Spike did not think they had much of a shot at making it out alive. Illyria was putting one hell of a dent in the demons rushing toward them, but she was running on anger not strategy. The wounds she was taking were starting to pile up and there was no way she was going to last to the end of the fight.

"Spike, while she's still fighting, get the hell out of here," Angel yelled over the din of combat.

"What the bloody hell are you talking about?" Spike yelled back.

"We both know we're not going to win even if you're here. I gave up my Shanshu and it's yours now. You're the one that needs to survive this not me. The Viper's around the corner," Angel said.

Spike took a deep breath, getting ready to protest when Angel cut him off. "Grandchilde, do this. Keep an eye on Conner, be the warrior for light that I should have been." Angel smirked, knowing Spike would hear the smirk even if he could not see it. "And find a better nickname for me when I'm dead."

Just as Spike turned the corner to leave the alley he saw Illyria go down and Angel with his back against the wall. He made it to the Viper and was pulling away from the curb when he felt Angel die.

 

Spike figured that everything after his ass would have figured he would head straight out of LA like a bat of hell. He gambled that LA was one of the last places they would look at least for the first few days. Either his plan was amazingly stupid or brilliant… being that he was still alive at the moment, he was betting on the latter.

He knew his time was running out though. Someone who needed blood but insisted on buying it could not stay hidden for long. With the destruction of Wolfram and Hart as well as the death of everyone he knew in L.A., he did not have a lot of options. He finally decided to risk calling the Watcher's Council in hopes of talking to Giles.

After talking to eight different departments, he finally got in touch with a girl who answered the phone with a cheery, "Mr. Giles office, how may I help you?"

"Look you bloody chit, I want to talk to the wanker not get keep getting shuffled around. Tell him William the Bloody needs to talk to him NOW," Spike said.

"Ah yes, Mr. Spike," the girl answered back, not even the slightest bit flustered. "Mr. Giles has you on his contact list. I'll put you through immediately. One moment, please."

"Spike, we were led to believe that you and the rest of the people at Wolfram and Hart had been killed in a demon attack. You didn't come back from the dead, again, did you?" Giles asked when the call had been transferred over to him.

"Oi, nice to hear from you too, Giles," Spike huffed. "Nice to hear you're alive Spike. No, thank you for saving the world again and just about losing your bollocks in the process."

"Yes, well, are you the only one who survived? Buffy had asked after Angel and I was rather curious about Wesley," Giles said.

"All dead," Spike answered. His hand gripped the telephone hard and he had to lighten up the pressure when he heard the plastic start to crack. "But they all went out with a bang. Even the poof… Angel."

"It was not 'the' apocalypse that he died in so I suppose you are the one the prophesies are talking about. Which would make your frequent escapes from death more understandable," Giles said. "I doubt you are calling to give me of all people an update though. What is it you want from the Watchers?"

"Nothing spectacular," Spike said. "Just thought it was decent to let you know what happened. That's all. I don't need nothing from you lot except a little information. You owe me that."

"As my assistant informed me you called collect, I'd like to keep this quick. What information did you need?" Giles asked. The sound of him typing could easily be heard over the phone as Giles opened a file on the phone call.

"Angel signed away his claim to the prophecy," Spike said. He started to play with the edges of the ragged phonebook with his fingertips. "Since I'm the only vamp left with a soul now, I want to know how all those prophecies are going to affect me now."

"We haven't done much in the way of research on that. Most of our work was destroyed with the old Council, and since then Wesley had been handling that for Angel. There really isn't much in the way of specifics I can give you," Giles said.

"So, all you knew and any hope of finding out anything from the Watchers died with Wesley? Figures," Spike snorted. "Can you do one thing for me, mate?"

"What?"

The only reason he would do this was for his grandsire as a final act of respect now that he was dead. "Tell Buffy that Angel loved her and he died with honour… not for a prize, but because it was the right thing to do."

After that statement they both seemed to be in a rush to get off the phone. Spike sighed as he hung up the payphone he was standing at. He had already decided what he was going to do if Giles was no help. Going back to Africa was not at the top of his list of things to do, but if anyone knew what affect his soul would have it was the demon that gave it to him.

Having one of Wolfram and Hart's cars with the specially treated windows would make this trip across country a lot easier. He figured he could make it to Norfolk, Virginia, in two days if he drove straight through. From there he could get himself booked on a cruise to Morocco with the money he would get dumping the Viper. It was the same way he had gotten to Africa before so he knew what he needed to do.

 

As the ship finally pulled into port, Spike wished once again that he still had access to Wolfram and Hart's private jets. He had never been comfortable with the whole situation Angel had gotten himself into, but the toys there were nice. At least he was pretty sure he had gotten away from L.A. and then the Americas without being detected. If they had known he was on a boat they would have taken him at sea where he was pretty much trapped.

With cash being king throughout Africa he did not have a problem getting a vehicle for the trip. It had only been dark for about an hour by the time he had bought a beat up jeep, and he was sure he would be able to get halfway to the cave complex where he had gotten his soul to begin with. Even a stop to drain some blood from an antelope did not slow him down much. Getting the fresh blood was a huge improvement over the bagged crap he had been drinking for the whole trip over to Africa.

His papers were in order, but it still took a little money exchanging hands to make crossing the first few borders go quickly. The journey itself was dull, but there was the radio for amusement in the settled areas he passed though. It was something to take his mind off that last battle and the loss of his friends and family.

There was also a muted relief in getting away from the overcrowded streets of L.A. He had always loved the crush of humanity, but now he needed the peace offered by the solitude. He was able to find an abandoned cave to spend the day in after making even better time than he expected during the last part of the night.

When he got up at dusk the next night he could see a storm threatening on the horizon. He had been caught in one of the periodic storms the last time he was in Africa and was hoping to reach his target before the storm got to him.

It was still three hours to sunrise when he made it to the cave system he was looking for. He had started feeling the power signature of the demon several hours before he arrived so he knew he was at the right place, even though seeing Xander Harris stumble out of the mouth of the cave made him wonder for a moment.

Andrew had said the boy was traveling around Africa looking for slayers, but that did not explain why he was standing outside the cave with a defiant but proud expression on his face. His body was covered with wounds and trails of fresh blood were dripping down his body. They just stood there, neither ready to break the silence or ask what the other was doing.

Spike saw Xander take a step away from him and he blurted out, "You got a new eye…" Not the best greeting, but Spike had never been known for being tactful.

"Not quite as impressive as the new body you seem to have gotten after you blew up Sunnydale," Xander answered. He had been looking slightly to the side of Spike up until the time he spoke to him. The moment their eyes locked he swayed and started to collapse.

"Shit," Spike hissed. He reacted instantly, moving quickly to catch Xander before he fell to the ground. With alarm, he noticed that that Xander's eyes had rolled back enough that he could only see their whites. "C'mon, Harris… don't do this to me. I've already had enough trouble this century."

When Spike looked up he saw the demon that had given him back his soul and probably given Xander his eye back. "What'd you do to him?" Spike asked.

"Only what he asked, vampire. He's going to be important even if he won't directly save the world like you will," the demon answered. "You might want to make sure he survives long enough to master what he has earned." The demon had stepped back while he was talking and the cave sealed up with his last word, leaving Spike and Xander outside.

Xander had come around enough to start scratching at his new eye. Spike laid him down on the ground and grabbed Xander's hands. "Stop that!"

"It's too bright! Too much…" Xander groaned, trying to fight against Spike's iron grip. "Feels like my eye is gonna burn out!"

"What'd you do? Get something more then just your eye back in there did you?" Spike asked. "All there is out here is some moonlight, and I'm pretty sure that's not what's so bright."

"It's you," Xander said and tried to shove Spike away. "You're lit up like a fucking Christmas tree! It wasn't supposed to work this way."

Spike twisted Xander around so he was facing away from Spike and out into the distance. "That's spectacularly unhelpful, pet. Let’s try a more detailed answer, remembering my chip got fried when I died saving the world," he said.

"Fine!" Xander snapped. "You look like a walking, talking blue and red lava lamp on crack. Happy?"

"Well good luck with whatever the hell you're doing," Spike said as he got up and left Xander sitting in the dirt. He started talking to himself as he walked away. "S'been a year and he still can't answer simple questions."

"I can't exactly think straight," Xander groused, scrambling to his feet. "My head hurts and I just went to through a magic spell to restore my eye with an evil detector. It more than hurt, sorry I'm not so receptive to your stupid questions."

"Now see, that's all I needed to know," Spike said. He stopped walking away and turned around to look at Xander. "I'm guessing you see more than just evil though, you're seeing good too and thanks to my poofy soul and the demon…. Try looking at me now, see if distance tones it down some."

Xander rubbed at his new eye with the palm of his hand and blinked. He could see Spike as he remembered him, but an aura of blue fought with red in a swirl around his body. It wasn't as overwhelming as it had been at first, but it still made his head ache. He closed his new eye and the aura disappeared.

"It's still there," Xander said. He kept his new eye squeezed shut and wondered if his old eye patch would work. "It's like chaos dancing around your body."

"Yeah, well, too annoying to get used to, or do you want some company wherever you're going?" Spike asked. "I didn't see a vehicle around here other then my jeep."

"I walked here," Xander said and when Spike gave him a doubtful look, he added, "I did! It's not like I couldn't afford a ride or anything, it was just all part of the journey."

"I think I was given the big brush off here so I got no plans. Where do you need to go now?" Spike asked. "You can ride shotgun and avoid looking at me if need be. Maybe we can catch each other up on what's going on. You do know I'm the only one left from the L.A. crew right?"

Xander stopped walking for a moment. "No, I didn't. Was it bad?"

"It ended the only way it could." Spike shrugged his shoulders and dug his hands into his pocket. He took out a cigarette out and lit it.

"So, Deadboy is dead, like really dead. It's no secret I never really liked him, but thinking he's not around anymore is weird you know," Xander said. "Didn't know any of the rest of your crew, other than Wesley and didn't know him very well. Did you all win, kick evil's ass again?"

Spike puffed on his cigarette and paused for a moment. "We left evil bruised up a lot at least."

"Sounds like the way I'd like to go," Xander snorted. He wet his fingers and tried to scrub away the dried blood and dirt on his face.

"Don't say that," Spike told him. "They might've died nobly, but they're still dead."

"Not saying I want to die now. I'm just saying that when I do go, I'd like to do something with the dying you know. Not that I'm ever going to top the burning yourself to a crisp to save the world," Xander said. "So, why exactly were you here? It didn't look like you were expecting me."

"I was here for some bloody answers." Spike had started walking again and when he reached the jeep he leaned against the hood. "Didn't get any really, but that's why I was here. Not only did I die like a toasted marshmallow, I get the joy of being the world's only souled vamp now."

"So, all along, all the hand wringing and trying to sway Angel, and it was you all along," Xander said with a chuckle. "And you got at least one answer. He said you were going to save the world again."

"Oh, lucky me," Spike griped. "Just have to dodge the assholes from Wolfram and Hart in the mean time. Maybe I'll just save the world in my spare time."

They both moved onto other topics, mostly talking about what had happened to each of them over the last year. Xander did ask a few questions about Wolfram and Hart, but figured out pretty quick that they would be after Spike like they had been after Angel.

Xander bit back a groan when they stopped near a deserted shack right before sunrise. "I forgot, no more tan while I have a vampire protector. I guess it's a fair trade," Xander said.

"It looks like you could use the sleep, pet," Spike pointed out. Xander appeared to be pushing himself too hard if the dark circles under his eyes were anything to go by. "Not the same without all the bints to nag you."

"Oh yeah, because I'm not able to take care of myself. You volunteering to be my latest 'bint', Spike? Make sure I get my sleep and veggies?" Xander asked.

Spike was settling into the shack and checking to make sure no light would get in. He did not want to bury himself in the dirt unless he absolutely had to. "Maybe you need a keeper. And what was with that comment about a vampire protector? You have a lot of those lately?"

"There's another chipped vamp roaming around over here. He was trying to get on my good side to get me to protect him from the slayers. He finally took off, said being around them was too 'itchy' or something," Xander said.

Spike felt something flash up that he could not identify and quickly pushed the feeling back down. "Know the feeling," Spike grumbled. "And surprised another vamp would go near you since you reek of the Aurelius line."

"The vamps in that line are either souled or crazy," Xander said with small grin as he glanced quickly at Spike, trying to get used to seeing the swirling auras.

"Yeah, the bitch is crazy" Spike admitted with his own grin. "Figured that would be enough to scare off anyone else if they realize you're one of ours. Plus, I'm still the Big Bad even with a soul."

"Right, that's why you are hiding out in Africa with me of all people," Xander said. "Not that I'm going to complain about the company. You know it gets scary out here in some ways that Sunnyhell can't even begin to touch."

"Like what?" Spike asked. He was settling onto the ground, getting ready for a day's sleep. "And don't say I'm going to make the perfect bait for your baby slayers."

"You're not going to just be the perfect bait for my baby slayers," Xander said. "As for the demons here, they’re just older. Most the stuff in Sunnyhell was sweeping into town in a power play. Here, I'm running into demons that have ruled an area for generations. It's their home turf, not mine."

"I can handle demons." Spike reached under his coat and tossed a rock away from him. "I just should stay clear of the ones from Wolfram and Hart. Now, I need to get my beauty sleep and dream of premium scotch."

 

The sun was just setting as Spike woke back up. It only took him a second to realize that Xander had left sometime during the day and was not anywhere nearby. Grumbling, he checked around for any sign of a struggle. When he did not see any evidence of a fight he looked outside to make sure the jeep was still there.

Less then ten minutes later Xander came trudging into view. He was holding the edges of his shirt, making a basket for fruit. "Hey, Spike, I figured I'd be able to cook some of the animals you drain for my meals when we're away from towns, but I wanted to get some fruit to go with it."

"I could make so many fruity jokes right now," Spike commented. "I don't suppose you bought me any smokes?"

"Oh, hell, I knew I should have picked some off the cigarette bush I ran across," Xander said. "We're miles from civilization of any type and probably hundreds of miles from a grocery store that might have brands you know."

"It's just after dusk, give me a break," Spike grumbled. He ran his hand through his hair and tried to flatten it. "It's too early for my brain to function well. Did you sleep at all?"

"Yeah, I just got up a few hours ago. Like I said, I've done the travel with vampire thing here before. If I get up a little before you I can get some sun and some time to myself," Xander said. "You going to hunt before we head out?"

Spike's answer was decided by the growl of Xander's stomach. "Yeah, I'll be going hunting. What are you in the mood for? Antelope… Zebra…"

"I can cook pretty much any mammal you bring back. Try for something that's not too large though, unless you want to wait while I prep it for travel," Xander said.

"Rodent on a stick, gotcha," Spike said. He was willing to try anything new that was not too much effort to catch.

"Hey, whatever, as long as you don't mind draining it, I don't mind cooking it," Xander said. "If you don't have any plans I'm going to plot out a route for us. There are some villages I still need to hit looking for slayers."

"Alright," Spike answered with a shrug. "But what if you find one? Do we take her in tow?"

"Usually, we explain things to their family and ship them off to England. A nice stipend for the family usually smoothes things over. In a few cases we hang out and give them basic training on how to protect themselves if they just can't leave for some reason," Xander said. "It's kinda weird. Fifteen and sixteen year-olds back home were just kids. Out here some of the girls already have a husband and kids. It's hard to get them to leave all that behind."

"I remember when you were that age," Spike snorted. He looked over Xander carefully. "You've even aged since I last saw ya… matured is maybe a better word."

"I was seventeen going on eighteen the first time you showed up in Sunnydale," Xander said. "Looking a little more grown up does help when talking to the families. I'll get a course picked out for us so where we know where we're going when you get back from hunting."

Spike walked up to Xander and reached out to touch his face. "Don't care how grown up you want to look, you should shave pet. And whatever course you pick is fine. Just make sure we find cover during the day."

"Like I said, repeatedly, I've done the travel with vamp thing here," Xander said. "I know how to plan travel around your light phobia."

"Then everything's just right peachy," Spike said. "Stay out of trouble while I go get the chow." Spike moved away from the shack and jeep, into the covering darkness.

 

"Wow, Spike, it's been three days and I'm not a desiccated corpse and you're not dust. Maybe we've both grown up," Xander said. They had switched from the jeep to walking. With all the places they were going to visit in the middle of nowhere the jeep was just too awkward to use. Plus it was hard to find fuel for it.

"At this rate we're going be hanging out together a lot longer. It figures that you visited all the places that were easy to get to already," Spike said.

They were still bantering back and forth when Xander grabbed Spike's arm. "We got something not nice coming right toward us," he said. "It's evil for sure and doesn't look like the demons I've seen around here."

"I believe you," Spike said. "Stay back while I take care of it."

He reached into his trench coat and pulled out a large hunting knife he had bought in Morocco. It was low tech and cheap, but effective.

"Right, would you like me to just cower behind you, or do I need to run screaming?" Xander asked as he pulled out an ax of his own. "It's not like I don't know how to fight you know. I've had to learn how to handle myself out here when I'm by myself."

"Yeah, but you're still mortal," Spike growled. "I don't need anyone else to die on my watch."

"Let's just leave it at you being an asshole and me being stubborn," Xander said. He stood next to Spike and did a quick sweep of the area. "It looks like just one coming our way, and I think he's under some sort of cloaking spell. I'm just seeing his aura."

"I hate the invisible ones," Spike sighed. He looked down at his knife and then looked at Xander's larger axe. "Wanna trade?"

Xander ignored Spike, muttering under his breath and moving one hand around. "There we go," he finally said. "Now you should be able to see him, and don’t even think you're getting my axe."

There was a sickening haze of green swirling on the road. As the murk dissipated, it revealed one of the ugliest demons Spike had ever seen, topping out at seven feet. "Gah, no wonder he wanted to be invisible."

The fight was fast and brutal. Xander made good use of his training and the greater reach of his axe. He managed to get in several of the blows that pushed the demon back, and he got the killing blow.

"Good to see you didn't get in my way too much, Spike," Xander said with a grin. He bent down to start rifling through the demon's pockets.

"I was just stretching," Spike grumbled. He noticed that the demon had a pack of smokes on him. "Hand the fags over…"

"He's got a Wolfram and Hart business card, Chicago branch," Xander said as he tossed the cigarettes to Spike. "Looks like he was gunning for you, not me."

"No shit," Spike groused. He took out his Zippo lighter with the skull and crossbones and tried to light it. There was no flame and he swore. "Bollucks. Hey, magic boy, can you muster up a flame here?"

"I don't do magic for fun. There lies the way of Willow and world ending magic usage." Xander pocketed some cash and a sheet of paper with phone numbers while he was talking. "I got all I want off his corpse."

"You should toast the evidence," Spike prompted. He could always light his cigarette from the burning body.

"Trust me, there won't be a corpse here in a few hours. That's one of the nice things about being out here. So, do you think there's going to be more on the way? Should we switch our route?" Xander asked.

Spike tucked the unlit cigarette behind his ear and put his empty Zippo away. "They won't just let me slip away. I need to fly low on their radar and switching routes would be a good start."

 

"You like your job," Spike said. It was not a question, but rather a statement. They had just come to a village where Xander had identified a slayer and made preliminary contact.

Spike was beginning to completely understand that Xander's role was not just about identifying new slayers, but also that of a diplomat and assessor. Xander's eye might point out who was a slayer, but it was his skill that made the small steps possible, like getting a handshake out of a suspicious father or husband and smile from a new slayer. Respect was not a word he had associated with Xander Harris before.

"Of course I like this job. I wouldn't be doing it if I didn't enjoy it," Xander said. "I can't get too attached to it though. Someday I'm going to run out of slayers to find." He had explained to Spike, sometime during the first week they were together, that Willow's spell had activated all the potentials in the world when she did the spell, but it did not seem like new potentials were getting activated. Giles was pretty sure the line was still carried through Faith and no new slayers would be called until she died.

"Pretty funny that you decided to travel a continent like Africa all by yourself with no one in tow," Spike pointed out. "And I'm not questioning your fighting abilities anymore. Just interesting choice, that's all… with all those young Slayers around with crushes on ol' Mr. Harris."

"It just felt like the place for me. I needed something to do when the Scoobies started to split up. If you're still with me in a month or two, we can go back to England and see if Giles has a place for us in the reformed Watchers. It's gotta be a real place, not a make work offer like before," Xander said. He flashed a cocky grim at Spike, a grin that had been coming out more and more over the few weeks they had been traveling together. "Plus, I'm damn good at this."

"Maybe you can become a rogue demon hunter," Spike commented with a smirk. Xander reminded him of Wesley in a lot of ways. "Put that new eye to good use."

"Did you not just figure out that there are now a lot of slayers? Demon hunting is something best left to them for the rest of this generation. I need to find something more suited to me, like what we're doing now," Xander said. "Maybe as a Watcher for a group of slayers, or you and I could be in charge of directing operations against Wolfram and Hart. Now that Angel is gone they might start bothering the Watchers."

"Probably not going to have much of a choice on that one, pet. Got a feeling that I'm their new project now that Angel's gone and I'm soulboy. Wouldn't mind the help though," Spike said. "I saw what a lot of blighters those fucks were."

"Well, the gang was not too keen on Angel's whole dalliance with them. They should be happy to have someone who was on the inside," Xander said.

"Should be happy and are happy can be an entire league apart… I've learned that the hard way," Spike said. "You sure you want to be associated with the likes of me? Not that it's not a privilege to be around me…"

"Giles is the only one you really have to worry about and I think you have a free pass with him. He seems to feel guilty about trying to kill you not long before you saved the world," Xander said with a small grin. "Plus, you hung out with Angel's crew but you were never really on the inside with them. Finish this with me and we'll see what we can do."

Spike laid his hand on Xander's shoulder. "I'll see this through to the end with you." When Xander looked into his eyes, it was the first time he could honestly admit that Spike was in greater in touch with humanity than ever before.

 

"That was the last one, right?" Spike asked as the plane carrying the slayer they had just found took off. "We're done with the African adventure?" It had been almost five months since he had met up with Xander. There had been several run-ins with Wolfram and Hart sent demons, but nothing too difficult. Spike was looking forward to figuring out what they were up to.

"There might be someone somewhere…" Xander admitted, but when he saw Spike's eyes widen slightly, he laughed. "But I doubt it. We're done with Africa for now. What, you don't want to work on your tan anymore?"

"Funny, mate. S'not nice to tease the vampire about the sun. I got used to it in Angel's office. All those magiked windows that let the non-burning sun in. Anyway, yeah, I'm ready to get the hell out of here," Spike said. "Council gonna charter a private jet for us so we can avoid the sunlight?"

Xander put his hand over his mouth and looked away. "Something like that…" he mumbled.

Spike narrowed his eyes, "What was that, pet?"

"Fine, Giles 'suggested' that if I wanted to bring you back, I should take a cruise because I need to take a break anyway and it's the cheapest and safest way to get you to England," Xander said. "Personally, I think it's his final test for you. If I survive the trip then you're safe to have around."

"Does he want to stow me away in cargo?" Spike grumbled. When he saw Xander's pissy look, he amended. "Listen, a cruise sounds nice. We eat and drink on their tab. I'll play the consummate Playboy who parties all night and sleeps all day."

"Not thinking that's going to be a big change for you," Xander said with a smirk. "As long as you stick with the bagged blood I'll make sure the council pays for everything. The whole trip could be fun and it will just be four days at sea."

"How many cabins are they springing for?" Spike asked. He was picking at his nails and wondered if he'd be able to paint them again once they were on board.

Xander went back to looking embarrassed. "Well, just one, but it has two beds. They kinda want me to keep an eye on you so same room for us."

"Well, there goes my playboy persona," Spike sighed dramatically. "I'll just have to tell the ladies you're my ol' ball 'n' chain."

"Not seeing how that's going to help you pick up chicks," Xander said. "I can always stay away from the room if you need me to for a while. I guess one of us should be getting some."

"Getting some, as you put it, is not on the top of my list," Spike said with a lazy grin. "At least not with some second class cruise chicks."

"Anyway, so we're cool? We can board tomorrow night so we've got tonight to pick up any supplies we need, plus the blood," Xander said.

"Store it in the fridge and keep the leftovers on dry ice just in case, I remember the drill. Just you don't get sea sick on me, whelp."

"Was thinking you could get the blood, Spike. I want to see some sights here before we leave so I was going to get some sleep tonight," Xander said.

"Why don't you sleep tomorrow instead and we'll tour the sites tonight?" Spike suggested instead. He actually liked the idea of showing the boy the beauty of the world at night.

"After all this time out in the middle of nowhere, seeing real sights here in Morocco would be cool. Did you and Dru ever spend time here?" Xander asked. Talking about their pasts without jibes or mocking was one of the things Xander had trouble getting used to, but he had to admit he enjoyed it.

"I didn't get a lot of time to do site seeing with Dru," Spike admitted. "Spent more making sure she was amused with her dolls and such. Sometimes it seemed I was more her keeper than her lover."

 

They were on their second night of the cruise when Xander convinced Spike it was time to dress up and make it to the Captain's dinner. Spike had no desire to get all dressed up until Xander finally pointed out that it would result in an extra charge on the bill. "Come on, we're going to be late," Xander yelled through the door.

"Now, now, I have to look the part if we're making an entrance, don't I?" Spike asked as he sauntered out of the bathroom in what looked to be a very expensive suit.

"And what part is that?" Xander asked, looking over Spike's outfit. "Oh, yes! The playboy. Well, playboy, shouldn't you know how to do your tie up right?" Xander walked over and undid the knot, only to retie it. "You would think after all those nancy boy clothes way back when you'd be able to handle this."

Spike scowled, but kept himself from pushing Xander away. "I also had this thing called a mirror I could use when I was a nancy boy like you," Spike said. He gave Xander a once over and was impressed with how he had cleaned up, not that he was going to admit that. "So, I can't see myself in a mirror, what's your excuse?"

"A lack of motivation?" Xander smiled back. "I don't like suits. Makes me look like my father."

Spike opened the door and led them toward the dining hall. "Make sure to tell me what the most expensive food and drinks are so I can order them," Spike instructed as they were walking. "Teach those fools to book us on a cruise without all the perks paid for ahead of time."

When they entered the dining hall, the lights were down and the room was illuminated with the soft glow of candlelight. It was buffet style service, but not like the cheap all-you-can-eat buffets Xander remembered for Las Vegas. Couples were seated at tables throughout the space, but there were also singles mingling about and talking. A hostess approached them as they entered the room. "Would you prefer to be seated together or with some single ladies, gentlemen?" she asked with a polite smile.

Xander looked over the singles he could see in the room before hastily answering, "Together, we'll sit together thank you."

"Very good, sir," she said with a small smile. "This way, please." She led them towards a table in the back with two chairs close to one another.

"That wine I just ordered was at least $150 a bottle," Xander said to Spike as soon as the waiter left their table. "So don't even start bitching about me ordering wine instead of whiskey."

"I'm hurt," Spike said, bringing his hand to his chest. "I sure it'll be just fine. Besides, the whiskey is for dessert after my blue rare steak."

"Here you go, gentlemen," the waiter said as she brought the wine back. "An excellent choice to celebrate an anniversary or honeymoon. If you like I can arrange for a special dessert as well."

Xander started to sputter, but Spike laid his hand over Xander's. "Thanks, mate. He's just a lil' shy. Honeymoon, ya know… first time out of the cabin. My boy here would love something with chocolate."

"Spike, what are you doing?" Xander said under his breath as soon as the waitress had left. He was not thinking about how it must look as he leaned toward Spike to whisper with Spike's hand still on his arm.

Spike could not help the wicked thing he did next… Xander was just so easy, Spike couldn't resist leaning over and kissing him lightly on the lips. "Giving people a show, pet."

Xander went quickly from shock, to enjoying the kiss. Spike obviously knew how to kiss and was trying to shock him. Xander's lips curled in a small grin before he kicked it up a notch and started pushing Spike back into his chair without breaking the kiss.

Spike's hand was just clamping onto the back of Xander's neck, when the loud coughing of a waiter interrupted them. Instead of looking disgusted, he had a tolerant smile. "Gentlemen, the Captain sends over his congratulations for the newlyweds."

"Yeah, well since you interrupted us to say that, we get something other than his congratulations?" Spike asked. He was fighting to keep a relaxed look on his face as there was no way he was going to let Xander know he had been surprised and a little shocked.

"Perhaps a bottle of champagne delivered to your room tonight, our compliments," the waiter suggested. "Of course, not in your current room. One of our state rooms is empty and the Captain has a weakness for cute, young brunettes in love."

"Thanks, luv, but we'll just stick with the champagne," Spike said. "We need to finish christening our current room before we move rooms."

"Very good, sir," the waiter said and then leaned in to whisper, "Just enjoy yourselves. It's nice to see some life shocked into the old bluebloods on board."

"Oh, it's not like I can get him to behave," Xander said with a put upon sigh. "He's always enjoying himself." There was a well-timed kick under the table at the same time he was talking.

"I'll leave you to your meal then," the waiter said with a smile. "May I suggest the whipped cream that is available through room service as an after supper treat."

"Fuck, I can't believe we did that," Xander hissed as soon as the waiter had left. "I'm not going to have to sit in your lap now am I? Then again, you are the smaller one, maybe you'd be sitting in my lap."

"Just shorter, not smaller," Spike corrected with a smirk. He sipped at the expensive wine and commented, "Not bad, but would be a little better with some O positive."

"Aren't you going to take me dancing before you go drain a bag of blood?" Xander said, trying out a pout he had never used on Spike before.

"Not only am I going to ply you with expensive food and wine, I am most certainly going to dance with you," Spike returned. "We are after all, on our honeymoon."

 

Spike had faded into the woodwork as soon as they got to England. Xander did not mind too much as there was a weird vibe between them. They had fun pretending to be newlyweds but it had gotten kinda strange. Xander had not realized exactly how much paperwork there would be detailing what had happened in Africa. He was halfway though his ninth day of filling out paperwork when he was interrupted by one of the nameless Watcher assistants.

"Sir, William the Bloody just ran into the building demanding to see you," he said to Xander."

"Show Mr. Bloody in right away," Xander said. Anything had to be more exciting that this mountain of paperwork.

"Mr. Bloody, can damn well follow this tosser to your cubicle," Spike said as he pushed the door open and then pushed the assistant out into the hall. "So, having fun playing Watcher junior here?"

"Fuck no," Xander told him. "I was just contemplating a killing spree. Good thing you're here. I need an expert… Can you kill someone using paper cuts alone?"

"Yeah, the trick is to make sure that there enough at once to…." Spike trailed off when he saw the look on Xander's face. "Then again, we can save that for some other time. So when you done here?"

"Now… now, is good," Xander said, getting out of his chair so quickly that it knocked over. "I'm going mad here. I'm not made for paperwork, Spike. I'm an action kinda guy."

"Well, there just might be a Frenthal demon after me, and I could use some help getting rid of it. Actually, just need a properly blessed sword if you think Giles can scrounge one up," Spike said.

"I don't need Giles for that," Xander insisted. "I have connections here and he wouldn't even have to know about it. I'll just have someone bring us two swords."

"Shouldn't be too dangerous with the right weapon. Those idiots at Wolfram and Hart probably thought I'd never be able to get one. That's why they sent the Frenthal after me," Spike said.

"They never took me into account," Xander said. "Xander the Resourceful. Xander the all knowing… Xander the…."

"…. Bloody fucking annoying. Why don't you get those swords instead of rambling on," Spike said.

"As soon as we get the swords we can get out of here." Walking around with the Watcher headquarters with a vampire wasn't the brightest idea. All of the new slayers would not recognize Spike immediately.

"So, how much longer they going to have you cooped up in here?" Spike asked as he started to poke through the papers on Xander's desk. "Thought we were gonna fight the evils of the world or something after we got back."

"I am done with the paperwork," Xander promised vehemently. "I don't like paperwork. I don't need it… I would rather face a Frenthal demon with you than another C-67 form."

"Just tell the big-wig Watcher that you want to kill things not write about killing things," Spike said. "I'm not gonna hang out in this damn city forever."

"Just a second," Xander said and wrote something quickly on a piece of paper. He taped the note on the door stating 'Xander has gone off to kill evil things. Any questions, talk to Giles.'

"Nice timing, pet," Spike said as the swords were delivered at the same time he was putting the note on the door. "Having access to supplies like this is nice."

"Only one quick email away," Xander smiled, clearly happy at impressing Spike, even a little bit. "I really should tell Giles we're going…"

"He'll figure it out. Right now we need to get out of this bastion of slayers and kill shit. There are a few other demon holes I know of that we could take out of we want to,"Spike said. "I know you need the distraction."

"Hell yeah," Xander agreed. He picked up one of the swords and tested its balance. Fighting at Spike's side was appealing, but also was the idea of spending time with him afterwards.

 

"If you don't know a demon bar we can go to, we're going to have to skip the post killing drinks," Xander said after they stumbled away from where they had killed their fourth demon of the night. "Because we have way too much blood on us to go into a human bar."

"Don't you have a place here, pet?" Spike asked, making a tsking sound. "And going to a demon bar covered in blood just isn't a fashion statement. You're asking to be licked clean at the least…"

"Yeah, we can go clean up at my place," Xander said. "We'll have to go back out if we want to drink though. I don't keep stuff at my place."

"I'll have to change that then, won't I?" Spike said. No home was complete without one good bottle of whiskey.

"So my place it is. I get the shower first though because you're undead and can handle the cold water," Xander said. "I can even lend you some of my clothes if we're going out. I think I have some of those Hawaiian shirts I never wear anymore."

"I'd rather go naked," Spike grumbled.

They drove back to Xander's flat and true to his word, Xander jumped into the shower first. When he came out of steamy bathroom, he found Spike naked on the couch. He was smoking and watching some reruns of Coronation Street.

"You better not have dripped any blood or gore on my couch," Xander said as he walked over to Spike. "Fuck, you did get crap all over my couch. Just go clean up before you ruin anything else."

Spike took a long drag off his cigarette and looked at the sofa. "And here I thought it was an improvement, mate. Now you're wondering why I'm naked… I saw that shirt you had laying out on your bed. I told you…"

"As the undead who needed me to get him a sword to save his life and then thanked me by getting blood all over my couch, you can stop bitching about clothes I'm offering you," Xander said.

"It's just a little blood," Spike said, getting up and shrugging. "Mostly dried. And for as thanking you, I have other ways of doing that."

"Shower now," Xander said as he pointed at the bathroom. "And don't drip anywhere else. I'll try to clean up the mess you made."

"Bitch… bitch… bitch," Spike said with a smirk. "Nice to have you back, pet."

"Back? I didn't go anywhere," Xander said as Spike got up from the couch. "I was at the Council and you knew where to find me."

"Knowing where you to find you and being able to are another matter," Spike said. He grabbed a pop can from the coffee table and stuffed his cigarette butt inside. "Wash my back for me?"

"I'm not washing your back!" Xander said, looking at Spike in shock. "I just got done cleaning gunk off my back." An intense blush quickly followed his instinctive denial as he thought about the offer more.

"Innuendo doesn't work with you," Spike sighed. He walked into the bathroom, but left the door wide open. "If you need to clean up after scrubbing your ol' sofa, I'll be taking an extra long, hot shower. I can always scrub your back, luv."

Xander started cleaning the couch off without answering. It was actually pretty easy to clean it up which unfortunately gave him time to think about Spike's offer. With the door open it was easy to see that Spike was still in the shower, but the outraged yelp meant he was probably out of hot water.

Spike shut the tap off and came out of the bathroom with a towel hanging around his shoulders, but not his waist. "You're out of towels."

"How could I be out of towels, there were at least four left in the cupboard," Xander argued.

"You told me not to get the floor wet. It's not wet."

"Spike, next time we're going to wherever it is you're living. For now you can air-dry and that's going to delay the alcohol getting," Xander said.

"You really want to stay in a rubbish bin?" Spike asked. "Though that apartment of yours wasn't much better."

"I'm glad I didn't go wash your back," Xander said. He tossed the cleaning supplies toward the nearest corner and sat down. "You have way too much fun pissing me off."

"It is fun," Spike said and moved towards the couch. "One of the reasons I like hangin' out with you."

"Great, you like me because I'm fun to annoy," Xander said. He dug up two dishtowels and tossed them to Spike. "Dry off and let’s get out of here. If I have to put up with you I should be drinking."

Spike reached out and went to lay his hand on Xander's shoulder. When Xander pulled away, he realized perhaps he had gone a little too far. "Xan, I just like you. I like it when you get all flustered… you're a challenge. Hangin' around with you is some of the only enjoyment I've been able to have in a long time."

"Still not horribly flattered here, but if you get dressed and buy me a few beers I'll forgive you," Xander said.

Spike left the room after a curt nod and without a sarcastic remark. When he came back he was wearing the loud shirt Xander had laid out for him with a pair of rolled up jeans. "I'll buy you some beer, me some whiskey, and we'll come back here. I'll even behave myself."

Xander fought back a chuckle as he looked at Spike. "Now this brings back memories. You in my flooded basement after stealing my clothes," Xander said.

"Liberated," Spike corrected, grinning back. "Guess I did look like a right fool."

"Well, lead on if there's someplace you wanted to get special whiskey or something. If not there are a few stores just two blocks down the street," Xander said.

About half an hour later, they were back in Xander's flat with a good supply of alcohol in tow. The couch was still wet, so they were sitting on the floor in front of the television. Whatever was on, they weren't really watching it. "How's your eye?" Spike asked.

"Sometimes, I forget you got it," Spike said. "But if you look close enough, it's a little different than the other one. More gold flecks."

"Maybe it's a vampire eye. Yours get all gold flecky when you go into game face," Xander said with a grin. "That would be poetic justice if I had a vampire eye."

"Doesn't matter to me either way," Spike said, shifting a bit closer to Xander. "I like it. Could write a poem about it if I got drunk enough."

"That's right, you are a poet," Xander said with just a slight slur to his voice. "You should be drunk enough, make up a poem now."

"I made a poem recently," Spike said, his own voice slurred. "It was on the night before Angel died. It was good. But you want a poem now, eh?"

"Sure, let’s hear something. I never knew anyone who was a poet before," Xander said. "I promise I won't tell anyone about it."

"There once was a boy from Sunnydale…" Spike started off, but stopped and laughed. "Just joking." Spike coughed and smiled at Xander. "It's not as easy as ya think. I'd probably start off by talking about your eyes. How they're brown, but not the everyday boring brown, like other people. Might start in on your courage next…"

Xander snickered but did not answer. He just pushed his shoulder against Spike's and took another swig of beer. He figured the blush would be speaking eloquently enough about his embarrassment over Spike calling him brave.

Spike reached his hand over and started to run his fingers along Xander's neck. "Your skin is nice 'n' soft," he murmured.

"Um, okay, that's something I've never heard before," Xander said. One hand was hovering near Spike's neck. "So, can I feel your skin?"

"Only if ya want," Spike said, trying not to sound eager. It seemed cliché, but the neck was an erogenous zone for a vampire.

"It is soft. Your skin is softer than mine," Xander said. "I always wondered if it stayed smooth or got leathery."

"Not a corpse," Spike chuckled softly. "Can prove that in other ways."

"Right, I should be afraid to ask what you mean by that shouldn't I?" Xander said. His hand was still playing over Spike's neck.

"Up to you," Spike said. "You'll only be scared if you're really repressed. I think you've grown up some lately though and can handle it."

"I think I'm very open minded. Andrew tried to pick me up and I didn't freak on him," Xander pointed out.

"So not quite as dense as I thought," Spike said as he moved Xander into his lap. "You figured out I was flirting with you?"

"About the time you started drooling over my neck…" Xander admitted. His hands were wandering up and down Spike's back. "Makes sense now why you were acting like an ass. You haven't acted like that since… well, it doesn't matter."

"Ummhmmm," Spike moaned as he started nuzzling Xander's neck, obviously not paying much attention to what Xander was saying.

As they started to make out, kissing and necking like they were teenagers again, they were rocking against one another. It was nice, but Xander wanted more. "Spike…" he said in between kisses. "Spike… I'm getting chafed here."

"You're the one that kept going on about clothes," Spike said with an annoyed snort. "Wanna take them off and get the couch messy for real?"

"How about we just be wild and oh… I don't know, use the bed?" Xander shot back, but he was grinning. "More room in the bed."

"I'm not a girl!" Xander sputtered indignantly as he was lifted up and carried to his bedroom. "And I'm taller than you…"

Spike tossed Xander on the bed and started undressing while Xander bounced once. "Yeah, yeah, you gonna get naked or am I getting you naked?"

"I'll tackle the shirt if you take on the pants," Xander said as he was already starting to pull his t-shirt over his head.

"Tackle, nice turn of phrase," Spike said with a smirk. He pulled off the last of his clothes and leapt onto the bed, pulling Xander into a kiss with one hand while the other was working on Xander's pants.

"You're the fucking poet," Xander sighed. Spike had to pull away as Xander's pants got caught on his foot. "I'm just fucking horny."

"Hope this is more then just you being a spot of horny," Spike said as Xander's pants were tossed off the bed.

"It's definitely more than that." Xander looked at Spike’s pale skin, knowing how soft it was already, but wanting to touch him everywhere.

Spike let him look for a few more seconds before lowering himself on top of Xander. They both hissed as they pressed together with no clothes between them. Spike started up a slow rocking motion as he started kissing up Xander's neck again.

Even though he had a soul, he couldn't completely control his demon. As his cock got harder, the demon surged forward and his face changed. He closed his mouth quickly and buried his face against Xander's neck. If he was lucky, he could get himself under control and change back before Xander noticed.

"Just going fangy doesn't mean you get to top," Xander said when he felt the ridges on Spike's face. He chuckled as he said it, feeling Spike tense up, hopefully with shock.

Spike loved the way his ridges felt against Xander's skin and rubbed them again, just to emphasize that he had changed to Xander. "Never said who was gonna top, pet."

"Right," Xander said as he rolled over on top of Spike, pinning him down. "But I bet you thought it would be you."

"Why wouldn't it be me?" Spike smirked back. His hand reached back and squeezed Xander's ass. "We could always flip for it… I'd suggest wrestling for it, but you'd lose automatically."

"It shouldn't be you because I'm the top here," Xander said. "That and I don't think it's fair that you automatically think the human's gonna play bottom."

"Will my human play bottom next time?" Spike asked. His fingers were now trailing up the crack of Xander's ass playfully. "Cause that works for me."

"Fuck yeah, I'll play bottom after you let me fuck you. If your recovery time is as short as I've been led to believe, you can have your turn right after me," Xander said.

"Right, enough talkin' then." Spike took his hands and put them behind his head. "Have your wicked way with me, pet."

Xander leaned over Spike to grab some lube and put it on the bed. A quick kiss on Spike's lips then he started working his mouth down Spike's neck. It took a few minutes, but Xander finally got a groan when he just barely nipped Spike's neck next to the collarbone. Once he heard that, he started working his way down Spike's chest.

He followed the light trail of hair down from Spike's belly to his groin. He delayed for a moment to tease his belly button with his tongue, flicking it in and out. He moved on when Spike growled and swore at him. With an amused chuckled, Xander licked the head of Spike's cock.

"You can have your wicked way, pet, but let’s not take all day about it, right? I have a turn to look forward to," Spike said after another growl.

Xander popped open the lube quickly and coated to fingers. He didn't tease this time and worked them into Spike quickly. "Not if I fuck you unconscious."

Spike pushed himself roughly back onto Xander's fingers. He seemed eager enough that Xander did not waste too much time preparing him. In one move he pulled his fingers out, flipped Spike over on his stomach and started sliding into him.

"Not gonna break you know," Spike said after Xander had settled into a rhythm. It was hard enough that it would have been on the light side of painful for a human, but it was still too light for him. "Don't think you could fuck hard enough to make it really hurt."

Xander did not take it easy on Spike once he knew he was not going to hurt the vampire. He fucked him hard until sweat was beading on his forehead. "Touch your cock, Spike," Xander demanded when he started to get close.

"Fuck you, either do a good enough job while you're on top that I come, or just leave me eager for your ass," Spike growled back.

"Pushy bottom," Xander growled back. He shifted his weight onto one hand and reached down to take Spike's cock in a tight grip.

Spike enjoyed a few strokes and then pushed Xander's hand away. "That's not what I meant, you tosser."

Xander decided he needed to answer without talking and pulled out for a second to flip Spike onto his back before speeding up his thrusts, attempting to hit Spike in just the right place. He was determined to make Spike cum just from being fucked.

"That's better. Knew you had it in you, pet," Spike said. He was trying to stay nonchalant, but the angle Xander was using was driving him to the edge. More and more moans were escaping as he started rocking back to meet Xander's thrusts.

Xander came first, leaning over Spike he kissed him, biting into his lip and sharing the blood with Spike. There was a faint tingle down his throat as they exchanged a minute amount of blood and Xander moaned lightly.

Spike came as soon as he tasted Xander's blood. They were still kissing so he howled into Xander's mouth while still trying to capture as much blood as possible. He threw in a few more strokes when he was done for good measure then relaxed bonelessly under Xander.

"How'd ya guess about the blood?" Spike asked.

"Scoobie for how many years?" Xander asked through a yawn. "Please tell me male vampires do the sleepy thing after sex too and not the talking thing."

"Cigarette, then sleep," Spike answered. He was already slapping his hand around on the bedside table for his pack.

"Good, talk tomorrow," Xander mumbled. "Tell Giles I'm keeping you."

"Mmm, looks like I'm the pet then," Spike chuckled. He managed to light his cigarette with one hand and stroke Xander's hair with the other.

Xander opened his eyes to give Spike a sleepy smile and kissed the inside of his arm. "I'll be the pet if you want."

 

"Xander, can we please talk about this message I received from my secretary?" Giles asked. "Apparently, one Mr. William the Bloody left a message for me that, 'Xander Harris is keeping him'."

"Mr. Bloody is bloody well right here," Spike said as he pushed his way through the door and past Xander. "Just figured I'd soften the blow somewhat you know."

"Oh well, a little warning is always nice to find out a vampire is snogging another one of your…" Giles stopped from his rant and looked at Xander to smile. "…charges."

"Don't worry, mate, it looks like this will be my last. Like I said, this one wants to keep me," Spike said.

"Xander, if you like boys… there's always Andrew," Giles suggested.

"He's just a kid, Giles. I'd feel like a cradle robber," Xander said. "Plus, I picked Spike and I wanna keep him."

"He's not like a dog, Xander," Giles sighed. He walked over to his highboy and took out a snifter of brandy. "Anyone else?"

"I know he's not a dog," Xander said, dropping the humour and getting serious. "He's… we spent a lot of time together and… he's right for me, and I think I'm right for him."

Giles downed a shot of brandy quickly. He turned to Spike and starred at him squarely. "And what do you have to say about this? It was only a few months ago that you were following Angel around like a puppy back in LA."

"I was trapped there and then they needed me," Spike said. "Plus, he was my sire you know. I'm with Xander because I want to be, not because I'm supposed to."

"I'm not going to say I'm happy," Giles said carefully. "But you could do worse, Xander."

"Thanks, Giles, that's… well, that's a shock really, but I'm not going to complain. We do have business to discuss too though if we're all good with the Spike and Xander fucking thing," Xander said.

Giles promptly took another swig of brandy when Xander mentioned fucking. "You want to re-evaluate your position? I was expecting as much."

"S'like this," Spike interrupted. "With Angel gone, those lawyers are fixated on me. We're gonna need some resources and Xander wants to help me find a way to stop them. That and no more living in the wilderness missions."

"You mean, you want the Watchers to fund your personal vendetta against Wolfram and Hart?" Giles asked. His face was emotionless, but there was something in his eyes that hinted he quite liked the idea.

"You know they are the bad guys, and we just want to stop them and protect Spike," Xander said. "They'd want to kill him even without the prophecy after he helped set back all their plans by decades."

"A project as formable as taking on Wolfram and Hart could take years," Giles said. "I would be willing to fund such an undertaking."

"Right then, give the boy a few weeks off, call it a honeymoon, then we'll get to work," Spike said.

"I should expect your new abilities will come in quite handy, Xander, in this new project," Giles said. "And as for taking a few weeks off… did you finish your paperwork?"

"Close enough," Xander said. He was not going to turn down an excuse to escape paperwork even if Spike was laying it on a bit thick. "The bits that are left can be done by anyone."

"Then how about a… vacation to the seaside?" Giles suggested. "The Watchers own rather secluded property that I can obtain the keys to."

"Say thank you, Xander," Spike said. "Watchers giving us a place to fuck with his blessing for weeks. I plan to take advantage of that."

"Thank you, Xander," Xander repeated sarcastically and smacked Spike on the shoulder for the fucking comment in front of Giles.

"Right then, I'll bring him back in two weeks. Mostly uninjured and still as human as he is now," Spike said as he started to drag Xander out of Giles' office. "Tell the front desk to have the key for us."

"If you hurt him, Spike, I'll stake you myself," Giles called out.

"Pretty sure that was force of habit," Xander said. "I do have to swing by my office before we leave."

"No more paperwork!" Spike growled, slipping into game face.

 

"Can't believe you were so tired you actually went to sleep when we got here." Xander blinked his eyes and looked at the pissed off vampire who was sitting at the end of the bed.

"Spike, I'm sorry," he said around a yawn. "We had a long night and then a long drive after telling my father figure I was going steady with William the Bloody. I'll be awake in a few minutes though."

"Not soon enough," Spike grumbled.

"If it helps, they say most newly weds sleep on their wedding night," Xander offered. His pillow was warm and inviting, so he settled back down.

"Nope, don't help. You gonna want to eat and human stuff like that, or you ready now?" Spike asked.

"I'm always ready," Xander said. His eyes were closed, but he smiled into the pillow.

"Good thing I got us both naked while you were asleep then," Spike said as slipped under the covers with Xander.

"You just like to cuddle," Xander laughed. "I know you just want me for my body heat."

During the night, they slept with Spike wrapped around Xander. It had started even back in Africa, when the nights had gotten colder than Spike had expected.

"We forgetting it's my turn?" Spike asked with a leer. "We can discuss your poofy cuddling later."

Xander pounced on Spike and pinned him down to the bed. "My poofy cuddling? If anyone is poofy, it's you."

"Bad boy," Spike said. As soon as Xander had pinned him, Spike flipped him off and switched their positions. "Remember who the strong one is here."

"Spike…" Xander said, running his hand along Spike's back, down to his ass. "Strength can be overrated. I'm more interested in staying power."

"Vampire here, pet. I had more staying power than you five minutes after I was turned and it's just gotten better with time," Spike said. "I'm just deciding how I want to start. I'll listen to requests though."

"Your mouth on my cock would be a good start," Xander was more than happy to suggest.

Spike snagged a bottle of lube and gave Xander a quick kiss before sliding down Xander's body. Even as he started nuzzling around Xander's cock, he flipped the lid on the lube and started to slide a finger inside Xander.

Xander obligingly spread his legs, to allow Spike better access. He closed his eyes for only a moment and his breath hitched when Spike started to suck his cock. "Change…" Xander asked quietly. He wanted to feel Spike's ridges rubbing up against his skin and maybe the slight rub of a fang against his cock.

Spike made a rumbling growl of disagreement and continued what he was doing. He sucked a little harder and slid another finger into Xander, figuring the resulting moans meant Xander was thoroughly distracted.

Spike was able to monitor how close Xander was and although he loved the taste of him, he would save that for later. Right now, he wanted to feel the tight sweetness for the first time. He took his mouth off Xander's cock and chuckled when Xander tried to push his head back down.

"You got your request, now be a good boy and let me have my wicked way with you," Spike said. He used the hand that had been opening Xander up to lube himself quickly before positioning them just right and starting to slide into Xander.

Xander wrapped his legs around Spike's waist, pulling him in tighter. The colours that Xander normally saw swirling around Spike had now become more intense. They were merging from the usual blue and red, to vivid purple and burgundies.

"You said something about game face before," Spike asked as he started up a quick rhythm. He slipped into game face and leaned in to run his fangs across Xander's neck. The blast of pheromones was enough to speed up his thrusts and bring a small grin to his lips.

They both came within moments of each other after Spike's fangs broke the skin enough to draw a bit of blood. Spike collapsed onto Xander for some of that poofy cuddling. "When you change into game face… the colours of your soul change, but not like regular vamps. They're always red. You always have that deep blue mixed in…"

"Don't need to know about my bloody colour scheme," Spike said. He grinned then started to rock against Xander again. "You did say something about stamina right? I think it's time for round two of my turn."


End file.
